Study Questions on California Government (PS l)
* Use the website provided in the syllabus to find links to answer these questions. Also,
you may use any other resource you find helpful.
GENERAL
l. Do Californians tend to think they are different from other Americans?
2. Are any states more ethnically fiverse than California?
3. What may be the most commonethnic categoryin this stateby 2050?
4. How different are the different regions of California? In what ways do they differ?
THE STATE CONSTITUTION AND DIRECT DEMOCRACY
l. How long is the staceconstitution? How is it different from the U.S. Constitution?
2. The current state constitution is largely a product of the ProgressivePeriod (about a hundred
yearsago). What did progressiveactivistssuch as HiramJohnsonhope to achieve?
3. What forms of direct democracyare used in California? (Hint: there are three.)
4. How many times, roughly, has the California Constitution been amended?
5. What important issueshave been affecteddirectly by voters? Name a few.
6. What possibie improvements might be made to the ballot initiative process?
PUBLIC OPINION AND THE MEDIA
I. Assuming that there is a regional pattern in California's politics, what is it?
2. Of Latina/Latino, Anglo (White, non-Hispanic), African-American (non-Hispanic), and AsianAmerican groups, which group is most conservativein voting patterns? Which is most liberal?
Which groups are in between?
3. Can theselabels alone be used to predict how any given individual will vote?
4. Does state government tend to receivea large portion of media attention? What do local news
broadcaststend to cover?
5. How important is broadcast media (radio, TV, someintemet) to California politics in
comparisonto other states?
POLITICAL PARTIES AND INTEREST GROUPS
l. Are political party organizations in this state weak, strong, or moderatein strength?
2. Do elected officials with a party affiliation act differently according to party?
3. Who selectsparty nomineesfor state offices such asgovernor, attorney general,Assembly
member, state Senatemember, and the like?
4. Do state voters who are registeredRepublican and Democrat tend to vote differently for
candidates and ballot propositions?
5. How many small parties appear on California ballots?
6. Does the state have one or a few dominant interest groups, or are many influentiah
CAMPAIGNS AND ELECTIONS
I. What are partisan elections? What are nonpartisan elections? Which offices in California are
selectedby nonpartisanelections?
2. What are the differencesbetween primary elections and generalelections?
3. What is ranked-choice voting, and where is it used in this state?
4. How does California comnareto the nation as a whole in voter turnout?
5. Which ethnic group .ottri.t. of just under 50 percentof the popuiation,but about 70 percent
of California vo[ers?
6. Does California have any limits on campaignfinancing?
7. How important are campaignmanagementfirms in California?
THE STATE LEGISLATURE
l. What term limits have state voters establishedfor the legislature?
2. What kind of majority doesit take to passa statebudget?
3. A recentpast mayor of SanFranciscowas oncespeakerof the stateAssemblyfor almost
twenty years. Who was he? Why is that position now lesspowerful?
4. Who currently is speakerof the Assembly? Who is president pro-tempore of the state Senate?
5. How typical is it for votes in the legislature to be cast along party lines?
6. Is the California legislature more similar to most state legislatures,or to Congress?
7. What are the salariesof our state legislators?
THE STATE'S PLURAL EXECUTIVE
l. What's a plural executive?
2. How many terms maygovernors serve?
3. What other positions are independently electedto the state'sexecutivebranch? Name them.
4. What is a line-item veto? Doesthis state'sgovernor have that power?
5. What doesthe board of eoualization do?
6. About how many people ,.*. o.r [he governor'sstaff?
THEJUDICIAL PROCESS
l. At what court level do most trials occur in state?
2. Do most court casesreachtrial?
3. Who hearsargumentsin the state'ssix Courts of Appeal?
4. The state SupremeCourt must hearfinal appealsfor what kind of case?
5. Which is more diversein membership,the state SupremeCourt or the U.S. SupremeCourt?
6. What doestheJuficial Council do?
7. How can judges be removedin California?
LOCAL AND TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS
L What is the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO)? What doesit do?
2. Canthe state government changeor abolish cities, towns, and counties?
3. How many counties comprise California?
4. Which county is home to about 28 percent of all Californians?
5. About how many students are enrolled in the state'sll0 or so community colleges?
6. Which form of direct democracyis most common at the local level?
7. How many Indian tribes are officially recognizedby the state? Do all have casinos?
FTNANCING CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT
l. Which of the rwo large parties would prefer to balancethe budget mostly with tax cuts and
program cuts? Which would prefer to balancethe budget mostly with tax and fee increases?
2. What portion of the state'sbudget is truly under the control of the legislature and the
governor?
3. What was Prop. 13?What was its lasting significance?
4. How have voters often affectedthe budgeting processthrough ballot initiatives?
5. What are the biggest sourcesof California state revenues(income)?
6. What percentageof state expenditures goesto K-12 and higher education?
7. Counties in California get about what percentageof their funds from state and federal
governments?